2 Days @ the GTSM Show - $75 = 1 Happy Camper

Since there aren't many decent card shows in my neck of the woods... I have to appreciate the ones I have. The biannual GTSM show is one of them, and I've been looking forward to this weekend for awhile now.

As I drove to the show, I devised a game plan. Actually it was quite simple: No major cardboard purchases, unless it involves either of the T206 cards I'm trying to hunt down. The economy sucks and I need to start living within my means... which means... I need to stick to a budget.

Well... I'm happy to announce... that I stuck to the plan and after two days worth of shopping, I walked away spending only $75 (free admission both days... my buddy had a dealer pass for me yesterday... otherwise it would have cost me $10).

And... in my hands are a ton of cards headed straight towards my personal collection.

There's a bunch of stuff to cover, so let's get going...

Purchase #1: Two Vintage Singles from the 70's $2

I arrived just as the doors opened and decided to start on one end and work my way to the other end. After running into a guy I met last month (at a local mall show), I skipped the wax box table and went towards the guy who had singles. I asked him if he had any 2005 Topps "Barry Bonds HR History" cards, because my buddy nblackford1412 is trying to finish off his set. The guy said he might have some, so I sifted through several $1 boxes... but he didn't have any.

But he did have two sweet cards from the 70's. This 1978 Topps Thurman Munson has been on my cheap vintage want list for awhile now. The card is the epitome of 70's baseball cards and is one of my personal favorites. Just check out the look on his game face... it's all business. On the flipside... Carlton has this big smile on his face. I've decided to hunt down every regular issue Topps base card of Lefty from his playing days and this 1977 issue looks like it was pulled from a pack yesterday.

Purchase #2: 1983 Topps Bronze Premium Steve Carlton $2

Another blogger wrote about this card a while back... and I've wanted one ever since. Another one (of the cards on my want list) bites the dust.

Purchase #3: Seven Sets $7

Although none of these sets are worth much... if I had to pick a steal of the show... I'd choose these. I came upon a grumpy old man who was selling a bunch of autographed photos, unsigned photos, singles, and card sets. Why would I "call out" this guy and describe him as grumpy? Well... let's just say he snapped at me, because I opened one of his sets. Now before you pass judgement... let me just say that the set was already opened and I was just checking to see if all of the cards were in there. And it's not like it was a vintage Willie Mays... it was a set he was selling for a buck.

I almost walked away... but one particular set caught my eye. It was a 1994/95 Donruss Masked Marvels set... which was a set I tried to build years ago, but never finished. I've thought about building one on COMC, but never pulled the trigger. Now, I won't have to.

I also picked up it's sister set... the baseball version:

1995 Donruss Mound Marvels

Plus all of these...

1993 King-B Disc Set

1994 King-B Disc Set (x2)

1987 Topps Glossy All-Star Set

1991 Upper Deck Comic Ball Promo Set

After scanning all of these cards... I just have to say... I love oddball sets. Especially when they're a buck a piece.

Purchase #4: 1989 Topps Tiffany A's Team Set $5

Did I over pay for this set? Yes. Am I okay with it? Heck yeah. 1989 may not be Topps' greatest card design... but it was the last time the A's won the World Series. This set is going to go great next to my regular 1989 Topps A's team set. Now all I need are the Rickey Henderson and Mike Moore cards, which were part of the Tiffany Traded set.

Purchase #5: Cheap Autos & Memorabilia Cards $20

Right next to my buddy's booth... a guy had 5 or 6 boxes of "hits" for $3 each. There were tons of memorabilia cards of stars... including older stars like Fred Lynn and Gaylord Perry... which just shows that memorabilia cards are slowly spiraling down in value. But I did find a few cards that peaked my interest... like the Greg Luzinski 1982 Donruss Recollection autograph, which reminded me of my youth. I think the only card I won't keep will be the Takeo Spikes. I accidentally left the card in my stack... when I really wanted a 2002/03 SP Authentic Jay Williams autograph.

Anyways... the guy was willing to sell me the cards for $2.50 a piece, because I bought a lot. My favorite card in the bunch is easily the 1995 Signature Rookies Kromax autograph of Tim Hardaway. The card looks scratched in the scan, but when I removed the protective covering... the card looked really clean.

Purchase #6: Cheaper Autos & Memorabilia Cards $18

Just before my buddy and I left... I had to check out this one guy's table. It was packed every time I went by it... so wanted to see what all of the excitement was about. He had two boxes of autographs and memorabilia cards... but this time they were cheaper than the previous guy. He was selling everything in the boxes for $2/card. However, cheaper doesn't necessarily mean better. Half of these cards will be added to my trade bait. But I will be keeping the A's cards, along with the BJ Amstrong and Carracter autographs.

Purchase #7: 50 Cards for $5

This was my first Saturday purchase. I saw this guy the day before, but didn't realize he had cheap singles until I was about to leave. I decided to go straight to his table yesterday.

If you love sifting through bargain bins... then you'd love this dealer. He had tons of refractors, inserts, and even some vintage cards for ten cents each. I wasn't planning on staying at the show long, so I quickly pulled 50 cards that caught my eye. Obviously there aren't any $100 cards in this lot... but I was definitely happy with my purchase. I'll highlight the top 10 cards from this purchase in my next post... an idea I once again saw in another blogger's post. Can't remember who... but he was sharing his top cards he picked up for $.10 each at the National.

Purchase #8: Four Seahawks & a Packer $6

The dealer who was selling the 10 cent singles... also had a few shoeboxes marked 75% off. I didn't see much I wanted... but figured I couldn't pass up this deal. Five PC additions for the price of two packs of Topps football.

Purchase #9: Three 80's Rack Packs $10

As I was getting ready to leave, I went by the table with the Jay Williams autograph. But instead of picking up the Williams... I decided to pick up a few 80's rack packs for future entertainment. He was selling 1981 Topps baseball, 1983 Topps football, and 1984 Topps baseball rack packs for $4 a piece. He told me on Frida that if I'd buy three, he'd sell them to me for $10... so voila. I decided to pick up two 1981 Topps baseball rack packs... and one 1984 Topps baseball rack pack.

I haven't busted them yet... but as soon as I do... I'll share my results.

Well that's it... nothing spectacular... but no regrets either... seriously... not even with the Spikes purchase. He's had a great career and hopefully he'll help the Chargers out this year.

Oh one more thing... I finally met one of my favorite YouTubers at the show. His username is im140, and I enjoy his videos because he's local, has a very laid back personality, and his collection is pretty amazing. So... if you're into watching sports card videos on YouTube, I encourage you to subscribe to him.

So... what do you think about my purchases?

More specifically... what was my best show pickup... and worst show pickup?

Be as brutally honest as you want... you know me... I'm a big boy, so you won't hurt my feelings... lol.

Happy Sunday everyone... and Sayonara!